Scca, Nasa, Grand Am Cup
05-04-2006, 06:26 PM
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Scca, Nasa, Grand Am Cup
With soo many differnt classes in the SCCA on a weekend one is lucky to get ONE twenty min, warm up, ONE twenty min Qualifying session and ONE twenty min race.
NASA seems go be going the same route. Too many classes mixed in with 4 HPDE groups and now TT. Too much for one weekend or even three days.
Is this the possible reason for growth of the Grand Am Cup class??? People what more then a 20 min races ppl want 50-60 min or 100 or 250 mile races.
Is it time for the SCCA & NASA to split up their weekends?? Small boar and small boar HPDEs & TT and Large Boar weekends?? Under 3.4 L and 3.4 L and up.
NASA seems go be going the same route. Too many classes mixed in with 4 HPDE groups and now TT. Too much for one weekend or even three days.
Is this the possible reason for growth of the Grand Am Cup class??? People what more then a 20 min races ppl want 50-60 min or 100 or 250 mile races.
Is it time for the SCCA & NASA to split up their weekends?? Small boar and small boar HPDEs & TT and Large Boar weekends?? Under 3.4 L and 3.4 L and up.
05-04-2006, 10:14 PM
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Couple of points here:
For SCCA Nationals, the minimum track time is 1.5 hours per weekend. It's right in the rules that you need 45 mins of practice/qualifying and 45 mins of racing for the race to qualify as a National. Or at least it used to be in the rules. All of the Nationals I've been to you get it.
Most SCCA Regional weekends are doubles (2 quals, 2 races) OR feature an enduro for many sedan classes (enduros are typically between 60-90 mintues) plus the practice, qual and sprint race.
If you look more closely at Grand-AM Cup you'll see that they REQUIRE two drivers. So that means that if you split ALL of the time up 50/50 you'll get 75 mins in the race, and probably another 30-45 mins in practice an qualifying. While that is more than most SCCA weekends, take a look at SCCA entry fees vs. Grand-AM Cup entry fees (not to mention the extra crew, logistics, expensive spec tires, spec fuel, etc required).
Grand AM Cup is most certainly NOT a better "bang for the buck" in going racing. I think every competitor in the paddock will tell you that running 2.5 hours of a GAC race will cost you more than running 2.5 hours of SCCA racing. It's just different. It's Pro Racing, it's Enduros with real pit stops, it's on PRO weekends, with BIG TIME pro Sports Car racing sharing the track with you.
I admit I've never driven in a GAC race, but I've crewed at a few, and driven in SCCA Nationals, Regionals and at many DEs. There are no two of those on track venues that offer direct comparison. DEs are cheaper "per minute of track time" but it's NOT racing (and so on for all of the other combos of comparisons).
I think that each person will gravitate towards the venue that offers the most fun per dollar, and that isn't always measured in pure minutes on track. Well, that, and there's usually a financial cap of some kind imposed as well.
-Matt
For SCCA Nationals, the minimum track time is 1.5 hours per weekend. It's right in the rules that you need 45 mins of practice/qualifying and 45 mins of racing for the race to qualify as a National. Or at least it used to be in the rules. All of the Nationals I've been to you get it.
Most SCCA Regional weekends are doubles (2 quals, 2 races) OR feature an enduro for many sedan classes (enduros are typically between 60-90 mintues) plus the practice, qual and sprint race.
If you look more closely at Grand-AM Cup you'll see that they REQUIRE two drivers. So that means that if you split ALL of the time up 50/50 you'll get 75 mins in the race, and probably another 30-45 mins in practice an qualifying. While that is more than most SCCA weekends, take a look at SCCA entry fees vs. Grand-AM Cup entry fees (not to mention the extra crew, logistics, expensive spec tires, spec fuel, etc required).
Grand AM Cup is most certainly NOT a better "bang for the buck" in going racing. I think every competitor in the paddock will tell you that running 2.5 hours of a GAC race will cost you more than running 2.5 hours of SCCA racing. It's just different. It's Pro Racing, it's Enduros with real pit stops, it's on PRO weekends, with BIG TIME pro Sports Car racing sharing the track with you.
I admit I've never driven in a GAC race, but I've crewed at a few, and driven in SCCA Nationals, Regionals and at many DEs. There are no two of those on track venues that offer direct comparison. DEs are cheaper "per minute of track time" but it's NOT racing (and so on for all of the other combos of comparisons).
I think that each person will gravitate towards the venue that offers the most fun per dollar, and that isn't always measured in pure minutes on track. Well, that, and there's usually a financial cap of some kind imposed as well.
-Matt
05-05-2006, 05:38 PM
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Skip Thomas's Preformance Driving School (where the LG Advanced Clinic is located) also has the Performance Racing League / Viper Racing League.
Friday is 7(!) 20 minute sessions.
Saturday is:
30 min practice
either 30 mins Qualififying OR 2 15 minute sessions
30 minute race
30 minute practice
Sunday
30 Minute Practice
30 minute practice
1 hour race
With all the cost to get TO the races, it's made fiscal sense for us to get the most track time possible while at the event. On a per minute basis, even with the higher event fee, this was more cost effective than an SCCA weekend. Fixed costs for the weekend mean the more track time you get, the better.
Friday is 7(!) 20 minute sessions.
Saturday is:
30 min practice
either 30 mins Qualififying OR 2 15 minute sessions
30 minute race
30 minute practice
Sunday
30 Minute Practice
30 minute practice
1 hour race
With all the cost to get TO the races, it's made fiscal sense for us to get the most track time possible while at the event. On a per minute basis, even with the higher event fee, this was more cost effective than an SCCA weekend. Fixed costs for the weekend mean the more track time you get, the better.